Head spin
by odoriferous
Summary: Sara gives Grissom a headache ... and then some.


_Author: Odoriferous_

_Spoilers: nothing in particular._

_Disclaimer: These characters don't belong to me. I just borrow them._

**Head spin**

"Tell me there's one fiber in your body that tells you he isn't good for this", Sara said pleadingly to her boss.

"There's no evidence to hold him on, let alone arrest him for rape", Grissom contended.

"Come on, Griss. The girl singled him out from about two hundred mug shots and identified him from our line-up."

"Yes, but there's no physical evidence to suggest he ever even met her. Whoever raped her used a condom. The fibers we collected from her body are standard black cotton, from a sweater straight out of any Walmart. Scrapings from her nails didn't yield anything. She didn't resist."

"She was paralysed with fear, Grissom. She's only fifteen and that guy has about seventy five pounds on her."

"I know. I'm not blaming her. I'm just saying we have nothing probative."

Grissom shrugged.

"Her word should count for something", Sara replied, feeling her frustration level rise at Grissom's apparent lack of concern for anything but the evidence.

"Sara, an eyewitness testimony will never hold up in court, no matter how convincing she is", Grissom reminded her.

Usually Sara kept her cool around her supervisor, but now she raised her voice.

"Dawn it, Grissom. She's not an eyewitness. She's a victim, who just had the worst night of her life and she's depending on us to at least make sure justice is served and that guy gets what he deserves."

Sara stopped her tirade only long enough to suck in a breath.

"He's got a rap sheet from here to Tokyo. And God, Grissom, I know you saw the way he looked me up and down, so smug. So tell me you don't think he did this", she practically yelled.

Grissom sighed and motioned for her to calm down.

"What I believe or don't believe is irrelevant."

"Not to me."

Sara paused, gauging his reaction.

Grissom simply shook his head, not pleased with the way their conversation was progressing. Somehow this had gotten personal and he didn't like where that usually led them. Suddenly he felt a dinosaur of a migraine building up.

"How can you be so cold, Grissom?", she yelled for real now.

Her expression changed from angered to worried in a millisecond when she saw him wince in pain and reach up to rub his temple. His other hand reached for her, as if he was losing his balance. Sara quickly stepped closer and let him grab her arm. She tried to look into his eyes, but he just squinted in discomfort.

"Griss, you ok?"

"Migraine", he said quietly as he let go of her arm.

"You look a little pale", Sara said worriedly.

Her voice carried a tenderness that unnerved him, but at the same time soothed his pain.

"Come on, let's go to your office. Sit down for a while", Sara suggested.

Grissom followed her a little reluctantly. He didn't enjoy being fussed over, but the headache had taken over his brain and made him far more docile than usual.

"Sit", Sara said as they entered his office.

Grissom uncharacteristically did as he was told.

"I'll be right back. I've got some aspirin in my purse. Just stay put, ok?"

"Sara", he started.

Her glare silenced him quickly.

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"Griss?"

He lifted his head from his desktop.

"God, you look awful."

She chuckled as she said it, but something in her voice revealed how worried she was. She handed him a couple of aspirin and a bottle of water, which he took gladly.

"That ought to do the trick", she said as she leaned back against his desk facing him.

"Thanks."

"Rough day, huh?"

He smiled at her awkwardly as he downed the pills with water.

"I haven't slept well in almost a week and I haven't had anything to eat in…", he glanced at his watch, "eleven hours."

Surprised at his uncharacteristic candor, she didn't know quite what to say. Grissom was so private about, well, everything that it always stunned her when he shared anything with her.

"You want me to go get you something to eat?"

As if he hadn't heard her, Grissom continued, "When I was a coroner in LA, I used to pull double shifts all the time. You know, grab a burrito for lunch and keep going. No sweat."

Grissom sighed deeply.

"I guess those days are over."

"You're too hard on yourself", Sara said kindly, "I mean, you have a lot on your mind."

Grissom looked at her the, for a minute thinking she was a mind reader. Did she know he was beating himself up for hurting her? That he couldn't sleep because thoughts of her haunted his tired mind? Did she realize he was at the end of his rope? That he was tired of pushing her away, but that he still had no idea how to do right by her?

"Those budget cuts are a drag. And with all the heat you're getting from the sheriff, I understand why you're stressed."

"Oh."

He must have seemed stumped, cause she gave him a funny look.

"You sure you're ok? I mean, I don't have to take you to a hospital or anything, right?", Sara said jokingly.

"Yes. No. That order."

She smiled and then tenderly stroked the top of his head. It happened so fast he wondered whether he had imagined it, but his skin tingled from her simple touch. They looked at each other for a few endless seconds.

"Did that help?"

"Huh?"

"The aspirin. Is it kicking in?"

"Oh. Yeah, it's starting to."

She moved away from his desk and for a moment he was scared that she would leave. He enjoyed their scarce closeness and didn't want the moment to end. Sara however stepped behind him and laid her hands on his shoulders. Grissom, surprised, half turned in his chair.

"What are you doing?"

"Just relax. Humour me."

Grissom didn't turn back around, but Sara wouldn't give up.

"It's something my mom taught me. She was into acupressure and massage for a while. Took classes with a bunch of her girlfriends back in Frisco. She's a little weird that way", Sara said with a smile.

Grissom felt too tired to argue with her and let her go ahead, albeit with a little reservation.

Her hands worked magic as they kneaded his tense shoulders and neck. Grissom moaned quietly at the burning, but sweet sensation. Sara let her warm hands travel from his hair down his neck in a fluent motion and then back up, tangling her fingers in his grey curls. The tips of her fingers put pressure on his scalp in all the right spots, earning her another grunt of pleasure.

Sara bent down and whispered to his ear.

"Told you that would work."

Her voice was low and sensual as her face hovered close to his and a stray lock of her hair tickled his cheek as she spoke to him.

When he turned his head to face her, her hands stilled and rested on his neck, where she could feel his raging pulse.

"Sara", he gasped.

"Feel better?", she asked so quietly he could barely hear. Then Grissom's hand came up to cup her face. Her mind was screaming at her to move away, but her body wouldn't oblige, and involuntarily her eyes closed as she felt his hot breath on her lips. And so his warm lips closed over hers, gently savoring and exploring. They were completely lost in the sensation, forgetting where they were, who they were, like the world didn't matter for a moment. When their lips finally separated, they moaned in unison, both surprised at the power of the rather chaste kiss. Against Sara's fears, Grissom smiled ever so kindly at her, which made her heart swell and almost explode in her chest. She grinned back at him.

"Best damn headache I ever had", Grissom said with a wink.

Fin


End file.
